Hello my friends. Darcy here on writing duties. Well, partly.
A few weeks ago I called at Butterglove House to have a word with Jackson. With Valentine's Day approaching I had suggested that he might like to write something a little romantic. After consideration, I had changed my mind and wanted to tell him. After all, he was regularly reporting on this Chunglewood project for the Treefellows. I am hugely grateful that he writes for this blog and I do not want to take him for granted. Especially since he does this in addition to his own work and family obligations.
When I arrived, Cecile greeted me as Jackson wasn't at home.
"He's around at Xenophon Treefellow's place helping prepare for an expedition. Can I take a message?"
I explained the situation, that her husband need not concern himself about devising a romantic tale, and Cecile gave me an odd little smile.
"About that," she said, "you know that sometimes I help Jack with ideas and stories? More recently, anyway. I appreciate Jack is a little busy just now but I still have ideas. How would it be if I told you what's in my mind and - if it's okay - you do your editing thing to tidy it up?"
Obviously I was curious. I had my shorthand pad to take notes. So I did, allowing Cecile full reign to relate her narrative.
o 0 O 0 o
I believe Jackson has already written about how we got together due to a fictional costume party. Although I've told him why my brother arranged this, I doubt Jack included that information in his tale. (*Darcy: True. See Costume Party from October 2019).
After our father died, Rowan thought he should adopt the mantle of being my protector. He was my big brother and he clearly felt it was his reponsibility. In reality it was a two-way thing. We looked after each other. Although he had a good job with responsibilities, there were - how can I put it - aspects of his personality that were unpredictable or even a touch juvenile. As such, I took it upon myself to keep his excesses in check. Don't get me wrong - I wouldn't change him. It is to his credit that, despite his need for a little excitement, he wanted to look after me. That's why he postponed his desire to travel for so long.
Yes, Rowan and I were close. We still are. However, back then I didn't realise that he considered part of his responsibilities to vet my prospective boyfriends.
On one particular occasion I had the opportunity to attend a special dance and I realised that I didn't have a partner. I had been friends with a nice rabbit called Gordon Cottontail but he had left Mellowdene to take a job on the Isle of Rut. I started to look around for a likely dance partner. It wasn't as easy as I'd thought.
It was a funny time. Everyone I knew seemed to be pairing up with each other. Emma Walnut and Ken Furbanks, Teri Hopscotch and Frasier Chocolate, Odessa Huntingdon and Marcus Tan... quite a large number of others. I think that was part of the reason that Ramsey Nettlefield proposed the dance, wanting something popular as one of his first mayoral duties.
Most of my friends - male and female - were paired up. I complained to Rowan.
"Don't begrudge them, sis," he said. "Love is all around."
"I'm not after love," I said. "I just want a companion to dance with."
He laughed. "Fair enough. You just need to widen your search beyond your friends."
My mind switched to his friends. I was familiar with Rowan's main group of friends - those I called the Burdock Bunch (Burdock being Rowan's first name, in case you didn't know) - and asked my brother about their possible availability. Just for the dance, you understand.
I first asked about the friend who was also Rowan's work colleague - Hector Corntop. He was a pleasant bunny who always gave me a smile when I was waiting to meet Rowan outside Henry-Lloyd Construction.
"Unlikely sis," he said. "Hec is already going to the dance with Christabel Hoppinset. They are getting quite close otherwise I'm sure he'd oblige."
"What about Tanner Blackberry? I don't think Bethany would mind me borrowing her husband whilst she's on holiday with Daisy Buttercup."
"Have you seen him dance? Great guy, but if you value your feet, I'd look elsewhere."
"Oh, yes! I'd forgotten his crazy moves at last year's Melting. No sense of rhythm and limbs shooting out in all directions."
"I'd suggest Charles Furbanks but I think the dance clashes with a motorbike owners' meeting he'll be attending out of the village."
With my friend Emma Walnut going out with Ken Furbanks, I was aware that Ken's brother Charles was fond of his motorbike. It didn't surprise me that attending a village dance would be less of a priority to this particular squirrel.
"That only leaves Thaddeus Cakebread. Is he free?"
"Yes and no. Some of the dog families have decided to use the dance to exercise one of their doggy traditions, complicating matters. Because Thaddeus has, in their eyes, taken too long asking anyone to accompany him, single ladies from the canine community are allowed to present themselves for his consideration. Three have. The thing is, he was only delaying because he was trying to figure out how best to ask Lydia Pudelle to go with him."
"I never had the impression that Thaddeus was shy."
"He's not. He's very popular with the ladies, but since he has set his eyes on Lydia he seems smitten and he's doubted his worthiness."
"Thaddeus?"
"Go figure. The point is, I spent time with him a couple of days ago attempting to convince him to approach Lydia. I don't know what has happened. In any case I doubt he's in the right frame of mind to accompany anyone else - whether that's you or the three from the canine community."
"Oh."
My shoulders slumped. I had thought the Burdock Bunch would be ripe pickings. A shame about Hector. He was a good dancer. It was then I remembered seeing a cute rabbit at Rowan's workplace.
"What about that new guy at your work? The Butterglove one."
"Jackson?" said Rowan. "Well, I don't really know him that well as yet. I should make the effort but... no, I don't think he'd be a suitable dance partner. He seems... a bit of an idiot."
"An idiot?"
"Well, a bit odd. Granted, I've not spent much time with him so I can only go by what I've seen. He doesn't work in my drawing office but I've seen him around the building. He seems okay at his job but when he's not busy he's running his paws up and down his desk like it's a piano. I know he hums tunes quietly sometimes when he thinks no one is watching."
"Calling him an idiot hardly seems fair. He looks nice."
Rowan regarded me thoughtfully. "I'll get to know him and let you know. But I think you should forget him as far as this dance is concerned."
I didn't know then, but my 'he looks nice' comment combined with Rowan's observations of Jack caused his protective nature to kick in. Over the next few months he did fulfil his promise to make friends with him; Jack even became part of the Burdock Bunch. Even then something made my brother maintain the unwarranted claim that Jackson Butterglove was an idiot. Later, of course, Rowan came to realise he'd been unfair, that he really liked him and that Jackson's nature was well matched to mine. The costume party was my brother's attempt to make amends.
"I don't know," I said. "With all this love around it appears I won't be able to find a dance partner."
Rowan shrugged, then a smile crept onto his face. He raised his paw like a volunteer.
"There's always me. I wasn't going to bother going but if you won't be too embarrassed to be accompanied by your brother, I don't mind jigging up and down. After all, you weren't treating it as a lovey-dovey thing."
I smiled, perhaps a little weakly. I didn't really want a pity partner but he was genuinely trying to help. Perhaps I could put that feeling aside.
As it transpired, Rowan didn't need to take me to the dance. Emma Walnut discovered that her fiancé's brother didn't have to attend a motorbike owner's meeting after all, and Charles Furbanks became my dance partner. He did suffer from a slight smell of oil due to a stubborn spill on his tail, but overall he was an entertaining companion.
As for Jackson, idiot or not, he wouldn't have been available as a partner as he was substituting for Mack Periwinkle, joining Isambard Marmalade to provide live music for the dance.
All in all, the village dance was successful and it was the perfect occasion for Hector to propose to Christabel.
o 0 O 0 o
Cecile's claim that love was all around brought back memories of that time. It was around then that Bridget and I became a couple. The Maces mice too.
I asked Cecile if she had any more information about the Burdock Bunch at that time and she was happy to tell me.
"Well, after a while Jackson joined the Bunch, and that led to Chris Snow-Warren joining too. They've all grown up and have responsibilities now. Married with children. Hector and Christabel, Tanner and Bethany. Thaddeus and Lydia. Chris and Charity, Even Rowan has got Angelica."
"And you have Jackson of course," I added. and Cecile nodded.
I put my shorthand pad away, making the offhand remark, "So there's only Charlie Furbanks still unattached. He seems happy being a good uncle. I guess he is the perpetual bachelor."
"I always thought that, but Emma told me that Charles now has a lady friend."
That gave me cause to think. "Who?"
"Sherilyn Munk."
"Really? How did that come about?"
"Well you know that Charlie had cut down on his motor biking? It was clashing with his jindik tournaments. Jackson likes the occasional game but not like Charles Furbanks. The Seadog brothers are always ready for a game and Charlie gives them a decent challenge."
"Go on."
"Apparently young Clifford Munk wandered into the snack bar and watched a few games. It turns out that he plays a variant called jinka and happened to mention it to those playing. Charlie revealed that he likes to play it too but could never find an opponent - the Seadog brothers are traditionalists when it comes to jindik. Cliffy brought his jinka set and they played a few informal games. Through this Charlie met Cliffy's mum."
"I don't know much about the Munk family," I said then I realised what I'd said. "I wager you'd never thought that a newspaper mouse like Darcy Fielding would admit to a lack of knowledge!"
"Ah, but I know that doesn't matter. Being aware that you don't know something probably inspires you to find out," said Cecile. "It might interest you to learn that Sherilyn and her children appeared in Sylvania with little memory of their past. A bit like the Umberhounds. No father though."
Cecile's comment reminded me of Mulder Honey-Fox's information about the supposed Sylvanian Order. Were the Munks newcomers like the Umberhounds? I had my suspicion about Lennox and Leona's Christmas Elves too. I started to wonder about others.
"Hey," said Cecile, "are you listening?"
"Sorry Cecile. I was distracted. What did you say?"
"I said that - with even Charlie Furbanks becoming romantically involved - perhaps love is still all around."
I agreed. Love is all around. And that's a good thing.
o 0 O 0 o
